challenges
by ohlookrandom
Summary: Johto's summer often yields nothing but boredom for the elite trainers all around Johto. Which is why when Gold appears to challenge them all,they are pleasantly surprised. Based off Pokemon Gold, from a different perspective.
1. Chapter 1

Hi guys! I'm sorry for not putting up a new chapter/story sooner, but here's a 6 chapter fic for you. My time lately has been divided between traveling, applying for colleges, and basically trying to keep my life from exploding into tiny little pieces. At any rate... here's what I've been working on for the last few days- when I've had the time, of course. Inspired by the Pokemon Gold game that I found online!

Disclaimer: Up up where we go, where we stop nobody knows.. oh wait, yeah, I own nothing.

* * *

><p>Lance is bored.<p>

There's just no other word for it. He's tried coming up with synonyms for it, but there's no other word that quite as accurately describes how listless he is. Ennui just sounds too boring, he's not world-weary, and by the time he's ready to write down the third word, his mind has wandered off to more pleasant things he could have been doing.

Clair always scoffs when he talks to her about it – or tries to, at least. _Trainers? They never make it past me. Or to me, for that matter._

Which, sadly, is true, Lance reflects. _We need a challenge, _he once mentions to Clair during one of their nightly calls.

_No, _you _need a challenge, _Clair corrects. _I'm fine with thrashing the poor things. _

Lance raises an eyebrow. _You don't think you could improve your skills_? he asks skeptically.

He can almost hear Clair shrug. _That's what the Dragon Den is for._

A total lie, Lance thinks to himself, because all the dragons in that den would roll over, hop on one foot, do acrobatic tricks and then play dead for Clair, and she knows it.

...

Lance finds out later that it's not just him that's chafing at the drought of trainers coming through the Elite Four doors. Morty strolls in one day, casually mentioning that he hasn't gotten a single challenger in five _months_, and then plonks down _Monopoly _onto Lance's desk on top of the paperwork that Lance had been trying to finish (or at least, successfully procrastinate again).

Lance scowls at the serene Ecruteak Gym Leader, but ends up playing a round (several rounds, actually) with Morty, Karen, Will, and Chuck.

Falkner calls on Fridays to give his report, because he is usually the first sentry that all trainers face before they go on to tougher Gym Leaders. Lance never says it, but he knows that Falkner understands his vulnerability, raising only Flying types and all. He's suggested that maybe Falkner change up his attacking type a bit, but the floppy-haired Gym Leader only gives him a look reminiscent of Lance's Gyrados when he forgets to feed it. Since then, Lance hasn't touched the subject.

But, he reckons now, if even Falkner is calling in to say that he hasn't gotten _any _challengers, either Falkner is getting radically better or the trainers are just getting stupider. And Lance tends not to lean towards the former option, because he's paid a visit to Falkner's Gym. He knows how it works. And he doubts that new challengers will have _that _hard a time getting through it.

So yes. The elite trainers in Johto are bored. Lance seriously considers retiring from his Champion post and going to find that infernal Red wherever he is on Mt Silver, because he bets that it's way more exciting up on top of a windy, snowy mountain than anything down _here_.

...

Lance is in the middle of a chess game with Pryce one day when the call comes. "What?" he drawls into his office phone.

Falkner's voice comes over the line. "Lance?"

"No," Lance says rather irritably, "it's Dragonite. I learned how to talk and imitate my master's voice."

Pryce waggles a warning finger at him, and Lance rolls his eyes. "No trainers, Falkner?" he asks, getting right to the point as usual.

So he is pleasantly surprised when Falkner tells him about someone who actually seems a challenger, who's beaten _all _of Falkner's trainers and Falkner himself with a single blow. _Eh, _he figures after thanking Falkner and hanging up on the Violet City Gym Leader. _It's Falkner._

Pryce moves his bishop and takes out another one of Lance's pawns. "A trainer?" he asks, interest coloring his tone.

Lance moves his rook and checkmates Pryce. "Yes, a trainer. But he'll probably never make it past Bugsy."

...

But he is wrong. Bugsy calls the Sunday after Falkner's first call, informing Lance that this kid (Gold, Bugsy thinks it is) has won his challenge. Gold apparently has a Cyndaquil that is ridiculously loyal to its master, attacking and scratching all of Bugsy's unfortunate Pokemon to pieces. Lance is forced to wait through Bugsy's long-winded explanations of how Gold silently issued his instructions, and what attack each Pokemon used, and how fluidly and gracefully they moved without sacrificing tenacity and viciousness-

-until finally, Lance snaps. "I get it," he says, and Bugsy stops in his rhapsody of describing how Cyndaquil moved across the field. "How many Pokemon did he have left when he won?"

Bugsy doesn't have to stop and think about it, because he is a born researcher and he knows how to observe things quickly. "All of them."

"_All _of them?" Lance asks in disbelief.

"I know, I was surprised too!" And Bugsy launches into another description of how Gold's Hoothoot soared into the sky before pouncing on his Beedrill.

Lance leaves the phone on speaker for the rest of the call, only making grunts when Bugsy pauses for breath. He is intrigued, he does admit to himself, but he wonders if this challenger is a fluke shot, a taunt by the universe. After all, Bugsy might be no lightweight, but he is also one of the weaker Gym Leaders in Lance's opinion. Not that Bugsy minds, though, since he is forever studying Pokemon instead of training a different variety.

At any rate, Lance spends a little bit more time than usual that afternoon training his Pokemon. A little bit of hard work never hurt anyone, he figures.

...

"Arceus, you're _worried_," Clair says when he calls her at eight that night. "Why are you worried? You're a dragon user."

"I'm not worried," Lance says defensively.

"So then why have we spent half an hour talking about a kid who's beaten two of the weakest Gym Leaders so far?"

"Be nice, Clair," is Lance's automatic response.

"It's not a matter of being nice. It's a matter of stating the facts, dear cousin."

"Falkner and Bugsy have their strengths," Lance tries to point out.

"If the entire world revolved around Flying types and Bug types, then yeah, they have their strengths." Clair sounds annoyed. "Think about it. We haven't had a challenger in months. Now that a kid shows up and takes out the first two Gym Leaders, you think he's going to come along and be the next best thing around here?"

Lance shrugs. "Stranger things have happened."

Clair sighs loudly, and Lance is reminded of why everyone always stays far away from Clair whenever there is a Gym Leader convention in Johto. Clair is terrifying, especially so when her level of impatience is through the roof. "Whatever," Clair says in response to Lance. "Be paranoid. You feed Gyarados everyday and you're paranoid about a kid. Whitney will take care of him, you'll see." And then Lance hears his cousin mutter, "If she doesn't chase him away by her constant whining, that is."

His phone beeps, and Lance glances at his screen. "Whitney's calling," he says, and Clair deadpans, "Joy." She hangs up without a goodbye, and Lance rolls his eyes, like he does every night.

He flips to his other line, and is greeted by someone sobbing on the other end of the phone line. Lance sighs inaudibly. "What's happened now, Whitney?" he asks, trying to sound patient.

"He beat me!" Whitney sobs.

Lance's eyebrow rises. "Gold?"

"Yes, him! I don't believe it! My Miltank!" Whitney is sobbing loudly, and Lance is tempted to reach through the phone and smack her to shut her up. But he restrains himself, instead choosing to carefully ask, "Did you give him a good fight?"

"Did I! Of course I did!" Whitney's tone shifts from sad to indignant, and Lance is aware that if he makes a faulty move, Whitney might just shift into furious mode. A furious Whitney is never a good thing, Lance remembers- the last time she was really angry, she had scared even Chuck- and Chuck is not easily scared.

"I'm sure you were just unlucky," Lance tries to soothe Whitney. "Did he use Potions?"

"No!" Whitney sniffles.

Lance raises an eyebrow. "He _didn't _use a Potion?"

"I don't even think he had any! I almost had him, I almost won! But his Cyndaquil was so… so… so…" Whitney bursts out in tears again.

Lance sighs, tugging his hair. "Mean?" he suggests.

"Yes, that!"

Typical, Lance figures. _Every _Pokemon Whitney lost to would be considered mean, even if it was a Jigglypuff wearing a ballet tutu and waving a balloon.

...

He gives Morty a call the next day to try and figure out what the Ecruteak Gym Leader thinks- or predicts. Lance wonders sometimes if Morty cheats when he "sees the future", or so he claims, but so far he hasn't found any evidence of that… yet. At any rate, Lance picks up the phone to try and probe Morty about what he sees.

"I sense that this is about Gold," is the first thing Morty says when he answers Lance's call.

"Did you use your psychic powers to figure that out?" Lance asks, knowing that his tone might be construed as sarcasm to others with less patience than the Ecruteak Gym Leader.

"No," Morty says with some amusement, "but Falkner has already called me about Gold, and I hear from my Ghost Pokemon that Gold has just defeated Whitney. Common sense therefore dictates that he will come to me next."

"What do you see, then?" Lance puts Morty on speakerphone while he paces to the window overlooking the gardens outside the League.

"Ah," Morty says with some regret, "and that I cannot predict yet."

"You're a psychic, and you can't tell if a child is going to defeat you?" Lance wants to know.

"I sense that he is no ordinary child. The spirits tell me that he is of New Bark Town, a child reminiscent of the last Champion- what is his name? Crimson? Magenta?"

"Red," Lance corrects, knowing that Morty is tacking on the last two parts to tease him. "What do you mean, reminiscent of the last Champion?"

"That, I cannot yet foresee."

"What _can _you foresee, exactly?" Lance demands.

Morty chuckles. "I foresee that he is about to reach the door of my Gym…now." And Lance hears the soft chime of a bell. He can almost hear Morty's satisfied smile. "Time to go. I will let you know the extent of his prowess."

...

It takes Gold two tries, but apparently he learns quickly. Within a day, he comes back and attacks Morty with the same Pokemon, but according to the lanky Gym Leader, the boy sure knows how to think on his feet. Morty recounts how Haunter took out most of Gold's Pokemon before Cyndaquil attacked Haunter with a well-timed Flamethrower. "And he just stood there," Morty says thoughtfully as he reports to Lance. "It was like he didn't need to speak for his Pokemon to understand."

"What do you think, then?"

Morty hesitates as he mulls things over in his mind. Lance is okay with that, because he too likes to deliberate on answers. Finally, Morty answers with the answer Lance had been hoping to hear:

"I think he's the one. We've finally got a challenge on our hands."

* * *

><p>reviews as always, greatly appreciated. :) thanks for reading!<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

"You're listening to a psychic?" Clair asks disbelievingly when Lance calls her later that night. "Of all the times in your life you choose to listen to a psychic _now_?"

"You don't believe the evidence?"

"Evidence? All I see is that those Gym Leaders probably haven't been training enough." Clair gives a condescending snort. "They're not like us dragon users, after all. We know what discipline is."

"Watch your words," Lance cautions his cousin. "I know these people. They train hard."

"I'm sure." There is no mistaking Clair's tone for anything other than sarcasm.

There is a knock on the door, and Lance looks up. "Come in," he says. Clair hangs up, as always, and Lance shakes his head.

Will strolls in, followed by Karen. "Bruno says that we have a challenger headed to the Elite Four?" the Psychic specialty Elite Four member drawls, levitating his ever present Poke Ball.

"It may be too soon to tell, but possibly." Lance steeples his fingers together. "Why are you asking _me_?"

Karen gives him a look. "Well, you _are _the Champion. You run half this entire League. You know things we don't." She crosses her arms. "What does he specialize in?"

"What does it matter?" Will demands. "You specialize in Dark Pokemon. If that's not enough to take out any amateur trainer, I don't know what is."

"You've heard the rumors, Will. He isn't any amateur trainer." Karen scowls. "I haven't lost a match in over a year. I don't intend to start."

Lance waves her concerns away. "He only has four badges," he reassures the pair of Elite Four members. "The hard part has only just begun for this kid."

...

But as the week goes on, the 'kid' doesn't seem to find the journey hard at all. Chuck calls a day later, informing Lance that he's got a "real firecracker" on his hands, and goes on in his boisterous, loud way to tell Lance that Gold is essentially one of the best he's ever seen because of his tenacity.

Jasmine calls two days after that, shyly telling Lance that Gold has come to her Gym, and he has all the qualities that a Pokemon trainer should have. Lance is somewhat touched by her story of how she sent Gold to Cianwood to get her sick Pokemon medicine, but when Jasmine begins to get off track with details of how sick her Ampharos was, he bluntly asks her if she won the challenge or not.

Startled, Jasmine replies: "Why, of course not. He was far too strong for me."

Lance is surprised; he expected Gold to fall here because as far as he knows, nobody has really been able to figure out the Steel-type yet.

What's even more surprising is that apparently, Gold only used one Pokemon to take out Jasmine's team. He's not quite sure how Gold managed to use a Golem to take out Steelix, but he's definitely intrigued at this point.

After all this, Lance reflects, if the kid didn't end up beating him, he would be surprised.

...

He is in the middle of a chess game with Pryce one day when his phone rings. Lance glances at Pryce, who is intently surveying the board; with a tint of surprise, Lance answers his phone. "Lance."

The voice that comes across the line is unfamiliar, but Lance chalks it up to not getting any calls other than from his Gym Leaders. "Lance? You need to help us!"

Lance frowns. "Who is this?" he asks cautiously.

"Nurse Joy." The voice goes on, somewhat unsteadily. "There's something weird going on in Mahogany Town, and our Gym Leader isn't around to take care of it!"

Lance looks at Pryce, who is still rubbing his chin, lost in deep thought. "Weird?"

"The Gyarados in the Lake of Rage are going berserk. Trainers have been coming in with terribly damaged Pokemon. Please come and help us!" Nurse Joy sounds terrified.

"I'll be there soon." Lance hangs up the phone, reaching for his cape as he does so. Pryce looks up from the board, in the middle of reaching for Lance's knight. "Where are you going?" he asks in surprise.

"Nurse Joy just called from the Pokemon Center in Mahogany Town. Something's wrong with the Gyarados in the Lake of Rage." Lance fastens his cape. "I'll be back soon."

"I'll go." And Pryce begins to try and rise to his feet.

"No," Lance says firmly.

"It's _my _city."

"You also look like you're about to snap like a brittle twig," Lance counters, knowing that he sounds about as snappish as Clair does. "You may be a great Gym Leader, Pryce, but you're old. No offense," he adds belatedly.

Pryce scowls at him, but sits back down. "What can I do?" he asks.

"Take my phone and call Karen, Bruno, Will, and Koga. Bruno is here somewhere, training as always. But I don't know where the other three are- Karen and Will may be together in Goldenrod, but I do not know."

"And Koga?" Pryce begins dialing numbers.

Lance snorts as he puts his hand on his doorknob. "Probably hiding in a corner somewhere pretending to be a ninja."

...

"Down," Lance instructs, and his Dragonite swoops down over the Lake of Rage. Lance hops off the back of his huge, hulking Pokemon and stalks towards the sign, where a huge crowd has gathered. "What's going on?" he asks one of the spectators, a young boy no older than twelve.

"It's amazing! This kid went out into the middle of the lake with nothing but a Seaking, and he's _beating _that Gyarados!" The kid turns around and gets a good glance of who he is talking to. "Holy Mew's tail, you're Lance the dragon trainer!"

"Yeah, yeah," Lance says brusquely. "This kid went out with a Seaking and is _winning, _you say?"

"It's phenomenal-" the boy begins to say, but just as he says it a roar goes up from the crowd. Both Lance and the boy turn just in time to see the Gyarados disappear in a flash of red light, shrinking into a form small enough to be contained in a Poke Ball. Lance raises his eyebrow. "He caught it," he says to nobody in particular.

The crowd, having seen the end of the show, begins to dissipate on the shore. Lance thoughtfully stares at the sign, ignoring the boy who's run off to his friends to whisper that Lance the dragon trainer is here. Instead, Lance mulls over his own thoughts.

He has heard the rumors, of course- it is hard to be the most powerful trainer in the region and not hear the rumors that Team Rocket, the most evil organization in history is reforming under new leadership. He's investigated himself, and he's had Morty assist him at times, but neither of them have been able to come up with evidence of Team Rocket's return.

As the boy from the center of the lake begins to make his way back to shore, Lance's mind wanders to the events of previous months. He's made several trips down to Goldenrod's Radio Tower to speak to Mary, as strange things have been happening. Parts have gone missing, eerie phone calls have been made, handwritten threats have been delivered. Lance suspects that Team Rocket is behind it, but nobody has come forward to claim responsibility, and as of late, the threats have stopped. Rumors persist, though, that a radio broadcast has been broadcasting from Mahogany... but Pryce had also found no evidence when he checked.

But now this… Lance scowls unconsciously. He hates it when Pokemon are abused, especially so when said Pokemon are dragon types. His mind thinks quickly, going over what Nurse Joy had said to him over the phone. Pokemon were being damaged, terribly damaged… even wild Gyarados shouldn't be so vicious towards other Pokemon. Gyarados were only vicious when they were forced to evolve from their usually docile Magikarp, and Lance's mind sticks on that fact. "The lake is full of Gyarados and nothing else," he realizes. "So the Magikarp are being forced to evolve…"

Lance is so immersed in his thoughts that he fails to see the soaking wet boy approaching him. It is only when the boy taps him on the shoulder that Lance turns around. He recognizes him instantly from the descriptions that the Gym Leaders have provided him- he is short, wears goggles on his head, and has piercing golden eyes under bangs of jet black hair. "Ah, did you come here for the rumors?" Lance asks, a smile tugging on his lips, "You're Gold?"

The boy nods silently.

Lance nods back. "I'm Lance, a trainer like you." He doesn't know why he bothers to even add the last part, but he feels the need to put Gold on the same level that he is on. "I heard some rumors, so I came to investigate," he goes on while Gold stands there quietly.

Something about Gold is intriguing, so Lance goes on talking. "I saw the way you battled earlier, Gold. I can tell you're a trainer with considerable skill." _And I've been hearing nothing but good things about you_, he adds in his mind. Then an idea strikes him, and so he blurts it out spontaneously. "If you don't mind, could you help me investigate?"

It takes a moment, but then Gold nods.

Lance grins. "Excellent." He explains his theory, and sees Gold's face change from curiosity to pure indignation. He also explains that a radio broadcast from Mahogany is the cause of the evolution, and sees Gold's hand drift towards the first Pokeball on his belt.

"I'll be waiting," Lance offers, and releases Abra before teleporting away. The last thing he sees is Gold turn towards the gate and walk off.

...

Abra puts him in the middle of the town, almost on top of an elderly woman who hobbles away while glaring viciously at Lance. The Champion grimaces. "You need to work on your landing skills," he grumbles to Abra, who shrugs apologetically before Lance returns it to its Pokeball, ready to be handed back to Will when he asks for it back.

Lance glances around. The area is lonely, dark, deserted, _cold_. How accurate, considering the specialty of the Gym Leader. He glances around, taking in the many dark windows-

_What was that_? Lance frowns when he sees a figure disappear below the windowsill in what looks like the Pokemon Mart. The ducking seems furtive, as though they don't want to be caught- how suspicious. Lance reaches for his first Pokeball, and feels Dragonite tense in it, ready to be sent out.

He approaches the Mart, and knocks on the wooden door. A young man opens it and beckons him inside: "Come in, come in! We're selling lots of things tonight, come and see what we have!"

Whoever that is, they're certainly talking too fast, Lance thinks, eyeing the man suspiciously as he steps over the threshold. One gaze rakes the entire area, and he feels as though the whole place reeks of suspicious activity. "Know anything about Team Rocket?" he asks, turning around to look at both the young man and the man behind the counter.

The look on their faces tells Lance everything he needed to know. He sees the man reach for something under the table, and Dragonite is there all of a sudden, wrenching the Pokeball out of the man's hand. "Ah, ah, wrong move," Lance tuts. Dragonite looms threateningly over the counter, and the man cowers.

"And what is this?" Lance reaches over to the shelf, where he can see several boxes of Slowpoketails sticking out behind a hastily placed flowerpot. "Slowpoketails? How fascinating. Now do you want to tell me where Team Rocket is?"

"Never!" the young man bursts out, and rushes at Lance with his fists. Lance raises an eyebrow, and all of a sudden, the young man is flying backwards from Dragonite's Hyper Beam, colliding into the wall.

The door opens, and Gold walks in, a Typhlosion tailing behind him. "What _took _you?" Lance demands, not taking his eyes of either man. "Just as I thought, that strange radio broadcast is coming from here." Because, he figures, where else could it be coming from?

Both men stand where they are, quivering, but out of fear or out of indignation, Lance can't tell. He stalks over to where several boxes have been hastily dragged, and nudges them away with his foot, revealing a secret trapdoor. "The stairs are right here." Behind him, Lance can hear someone stifle a gasp, and he rolls his eyes. _Can't even hide a trapdoor properly. _

"Gold," he says, turning to the boy behind him, "we should split up to check this place. I'll go first." Gold nods mutely, his Cyndaquil crackling beside him, and Lance turns to descend the stairs. "And don't you _dare _go anywhere," he tosses over his shoulder to the two petrified men standing in the shop. Dragonite rumbles menacingly, folding its arms as it thumps down in the corner and stares at them.

...

The next few hours pass by in a blur, but Lance hardly sees any challenge in the Team Rocket grunts who attack him with weak Rattatas and Zubats. Once in a while, he'll come across an Arbok or a Weezing- and he appreciates the effort, but one blow from Dragonair's Hyper Beam and they flee from him, shouting something about passwords and returns and how he'll never make it out.

Lance is sort of amused, really. He finds this simply too easy, but at the same time it's exhilarating to be out of the League and battling again. The thoughts of retirement surfaces in his mind again, but he pushes it away. "Think I should retire?" he asks the Gyarados slithering next to him.

Gyarados roared, and Lance heard someone squeak "eeeeeeeeep" before the pattering of feet could be heard. Lance grinned. "I take that as a no, then."

...

"Two passwords," the Rocket Grunt squeaks as Lance grabs him by the collar. The kid (because honestly he can't be any older than fifteen) cringes and tries to flinch away from Lance's hard black eyes. "You need two passwords!"

"Hey you!"

Lance sighs. "Another one?" He lets go of the Team Rocket member and the boy scurries away, recalling his Raticate and Zubat as he flees the scene. Lance turns around to find a red-haired teenage boy standing at the door, scowl etched on his face. _This is a stubborn one_, Lance reckons as he steps across the marble floor. "You're clearly not a Team Rocket member," he drawls.

The teenager crosses his arms, scowl growing deeper. "How do you know I'm not?"

Lance raises an eyebrow. "You're not wearing the uniform." He gestures at the kid "And your stance. It's not aggressive enough. You just seem like an angry teenager, untrained really."

"Untrained?" The redhead whips out a Pokeball. "I'll show you who's untrained! I challenge you to a battle!"

"Oh, you don't want to do that," Lance sighs, even as the redhead lets out a Feraligatr. "You don't even want to tell me your name?"

"It's Silver. Now get on with it."

Lance folds his arms. "Do you know who I am?"

"Lance, the dragon trainer, Champion of the Johto League. I know who you are, and I can take you." Silver jerks his head at the growling Feraligatr, and Lance is stricken by how different Silver and his Pokemon are from Gold and his Typhlosion. Where Gold almost seems to favor Typhlosion as a companion and friend, Silver seems detached from Feraligatr, as though he has spent no personal time with the Water type Pokemon.

"Get on with it," Silver says sharply, jerking Lance out of his thoughts.

Lance shakes his head. "You really want to do this…" He reaches for Dragonair's Pokeball. "You asked for it, kiddo."

...

The fight is over in five minutes, and Lance doesn't even have to switch out his Pokemon. None of Silver's Pokemon lands a single hit on Dragonair, and they are easily taken out by Dragonair's Hyper Beam. Lance allows his Pokemon to drift over to where he is, and they stand there quietly watching Silver as the boy seems to implode.

"You know," Lance says after a while as Silver bends over his fallen Sneasel and dabs Revive on it, "It might help if you love your Pokemon more."

Silver snorts, not looking at Lance. "Who needs love? I'll get stronger Pokemon. Then I'll defeat you, you'll see!"

"You're not understanding how this works," Lance points out as gently as he can. "You don't love or trust your Pokemon enough. Without those bonds, you can never be a great trainer."

Sneasel is gone in a blinding flash of light, and Silver gets up. "I've heard enough," he spits angrily before stalking off. "Great trainer, indeed! You're another bleeding heart!"

Lance watches him run up the stairs, feeling as though his heart is sinking with every step Silver takes. "Poor boy," he says to his Dragonair. "He really doesn't understand, does he?" Dragonair makes a sound that sounded like an agreement.

Just then, the ground shakes with what sounded like an explosion. Lance suddenly remembers that he is here with _Gold_, and Mew's tail, what happens if that boy is all alone being overwhelmed by several Team Rocket grunts? Evil villains didn't exactly fight fair. "Come on," he says to Dragonair, running towards the same stairs that Silver had just disappeared up. "Let's go squash some Team Rocket organizations."


	3. Chapter 3

Dragonair hears the commotion first, flying up towards the second staircase that Lance avoided on his way down to the basement. Lance follows his Pokemon around the corner, and is vaguely amused to find Gold facing down two Team Rocket official looking people. The woman, short hair cropped close to her head, is growling at the boy: "Sorry baby, now get ready to be thrashed!"

Lance grins inwardly when Gold doesn't budge from his position. That boy has some guts, he admits to himself, and makes note to himself to inform Clair of this fact.

Dragonair whines softly, and Lance is drawn back to the situation at hand. Both Rockets are drawing their first Pokeball, and Lance acts quickly. "Quick Attack," he commands, and Dragonair shoots off and knocks the woman off balance. Gold whirls around to look at Lance with an expression bordering on amazement and relief, but the Rockets don't seem quite as amused by Lance's entrance. "Hey," Lance says with a grin as he stalks forward to where his Dragonair is hovering, ready for the next attack, "Don't be so selfish. Spread the fun around!"

His first opponent is, surprisingly, a Sandslash. Lance rolls his eyes as Dragonair takes it out with Dragon Rage, effectively knocking the Sandslash out of the battle. "I suppose you executives get better Pokemon than the rest?" he taunts as his opponent releases Fearow.

Fearow lands a Peck on Dragonair, but it does nothing to the dragon Pokemon. A puff of Dragon Rage, and Fearow is out for the count as well. Lance dusts his fingers off as the Team Rocket executive reaches for a Pokeball that is no longer there. "My- my Pokemon!" he sputtered.

"I think you're done," Lance says coolly. "And you're under arrest, by orders of the Pokemon League."

Beside him, Gold finishes up the woman's Arbok by means of a Bite from Typhlosion. Arbok shudders and faints, and the woman recalls it. "It's a shame, really," she says, "You could have been an executive."

They are gone with an Escape Rope before Lance or Gold can react, but Lance senses that things are far from over. "That did it," he sighs, turning to his younger counterpart, "we defeated all the Rockets here. But I'm concerned about the young guy I battled in the process…" and his mind returns back to Silver. Briefly he wonders if he will ever see the redhead again, but something tells Lance that he will not.

He shakes himself out of his reverie. "Sorry, Gold," he apologizes. "I saw how well you were doing, so I just hung back. Now all there is left to do…" and he gets back down to business, "is to turn off that odd radio signal."

They both walk to the electric generators, which are still humming and fizzing and sparking. Lance paces along the length of the generators, glancing at the intricate layouts, but can find no switch or button that will dismantle the generators. _Guess there's not an easy way out_. He wishes that Will was here, because the Psychic specialty type trainer could probably find some way to turn the entire thing off… but he supposes that Pryce is unable to reach anybody at this sudden hour of day. "It's this machine that's causing all the problems," he says, turning back to Gold, but then realizes how redundant that statement actually is. "I don't see a switch on it…"

He sees Gold staring at something, and he follows the boy's gaze. A group of Electrodes sit by the side of the generator, fizzing and feeding the generator with their endless amounts of energy. _Ah_, Lance understands. "We have no choice," he reassures Gold. "We have to make all the Electrode faint. That should stop this machine from transmitting that strange signal." He pauses, seeing Gold hesitate. "It's no fault of the Pokemon, so it makes me feel guilty." Gold nods slowly, haltingly, and Lance takes in a deep breath. "Gold, let's split the job."

The Electrodes don't put up a fight. Gyarados sweeps them all out with a Hyper Beam before they can summon an attack, and Lance is done in five minutes. Yet when he walks back out, Gold is already there, shifting from foot to foot as he patiently waits for Lance. "That odd signal has finally stopped," Lance calls out as he approaches. "The Lake should be back to normal." He reaches Gold and holds his hand out to shake the young boy's hand. "You're the hero! Let me thank you on behalf of all the Pokemon."

He suddenly feels bereft, as though he is lacking some sort of ceremonial presentation award. "Oh, yes," he suddenly remembers. "You should take this." He holds out HM 06. "I found it here," he explains, "but I don't have any need for it."

Gold takes it, a look of wonder on his face, and Lance almost smiles as he remembers how he was at that age, too. "That's Whirlpool," Lance tells Gold, "teach it to a Pokemon to get across wild water. But keep this in mind," he adds, "you can use that out of battle only with the badge from Mahogany Gym." His mind goes to Pryce, and he wonders if the elderly Gym Leader is still patiently waiting in Lance's office.

Gold is evidently a boy of few words, because he bows to Lance before beginning to shuffle away. Lance is used to this; he remembers a boy named Red three years ago who acted very much like Gold. He is somewhat taken aback by how many similarities Gold and Red possess, and he supposes that this is why he calls out to Gold: "Gold."

The black-haired boy turns around, and Lance walks forward to face him at eye level. "The road to becoming a Pokemon Master is long and difficult." The look on Gold's face tells Lance that this is not news to him. Lance goes on: "Knowing that, will you keep going?"

Gold doesn't say anything. Instead, he simply looks long and hard into Lance's eyes, and Lance understands Gold's unspoken message. "I see." He draws a breath. "No, you're right. If you would give up that easily, you would never have chased that dream in the first place." Drawing his cape closer around him, Lance adds cordially, "I look forward to seeing you again."

And to be honest, Lance adds in his mind as he leaves the faux Mart, he _is _looking forward to seeing Gold again.

...

Pryce is not there when Lance arrives back, but he does find a note scrawled in Pryce's blocky handwriting. _Called Nurse Joy- heard coast was clear_, Pryce has written. _Borrowed Will's Abra, will give it back when I come for that chess rematch. I was winning, just so you know_.

Lance grins and puts the note down. Will isn't going to be happy about two of his Abra going missing, he thinks to himself; Will so very rarely lends his Pokemon to anyone since he takes training his Pokemon rather seriously. Pryce is lucky that Will almost idolizes him, or else Will might just teleport over and steal his walking stick. Or something equally as quirky; Lance still isn't quite sure how to take Will sometimes.

He briefly wonders if Gold is challenging Pryce tonight. He hadn't seemed too tired when Lance had left him, but it is _two a.m. _in the morning. The boy could afford to take a bit of a rest.

The Dragon user is about to drop off into a light doze when the phone rings. Lance jerks out of his nap and nearly falls flat onto the stack of papers he had been resting his head on, scattering them haphazardly on his desk and his floor. "Wonderful," he grumbles to the room at large, staring at the mess. "More work."

He picks up the phone, rubbing his eyes as he does so. "Lance. This had better be good," he mumbles into the phone as threateningly as he can.

Pryce's amused voice floats over. "Sleeping, were we?"

"Do be quiet. I had a long night."

"So I gathered, but you would never know from the challenger that just took the Glacier Badge from me," Pryce drawls casually.

Lance sits up straight and checks his clock. _Six a.m. _"He's challenged you already?" he asks in disbelief. "It's six in the morning!"

"He came in at five. Took out all my trainers with an Ampharos." Lance can almost hear Pryce's fingers tapping against that mahogany desk of his. "Gotta say, the kid's fast."

"And apparently doesn't sleep," Lance grumbles. "So he beat you."

"Like I was a toy." Pryce's tone carries a smile. "But I've never had so much fun in my life!"

"I'm hurt, Pryce, I thought the only fun you have is when you come over to play a game of chess," Lance remarks as dryly as possible.

"Speaking of chess-"

"You were winning, I know, I know…"

Pryce makes a grunt that sounds like he is agreeing with Lance. "He's almost there," he mentions, and Lance knows that by 'there', Pryce means the Indigo Plateau.

"I know," he repeats, rubbing his eyes again. "I'm looking forward to it, to be honest. I've heard so much about this kid, and last night I saw him battle."

"Work of art, eh?"

"Very much so like Red." Lance's mind goes back to the red-capped boy who is currently missing despite everyone's best efforts at finding him. "I wonder where he is now."

"Red?" Pryce knows how much time Lance has put in to training his Pokemon, so that when he next meets Red, he can officially take the title Champion rather than be known as a placeholder. But Pryce also knows that Lance considers Red a friend, an ally that he once knew three years ago, and as such misses him.

Lance sighs into the phone. "Yes. Maybe when Gold defeats me, I will send him to look for Red."

"_When _Gold defeats you?" Pryce snorts. "What, are you a psychic like Morty now? Gold still has a tough battle to go."

"Clair," Lance remembers with a touch of a smile. "I warn you, Pryce, she won't be happy that Gold made it this far past all of you."

"I almost wish I could be inside the Dragon Den to watch _that _battle," Pryce says wistfully. "But then again… your Dragon types don't take kindly to my Ice specialty."

"No they don't." Lance drums his fingers against the table. "Thank you for calling, Pryce. I will see you when you return for that chess rematch."

"Always a pleasure, Lance. Always a pleasure." And Pryce hangs up, leaving Lance thoughtfully staring into space with the dial tone ringing in his ear.

...

"He hasn't shown up yet," is the first thing Clair says when she calls Lance the next day.

Lance frowns, puzzled by Clair's apparent clairvoyance. "How did you know he was heading towards you?"

"Karen dropped by for a visit. She mentioned that Pryce had just lost his battle."

"Ah, yes. Karen." Lance remembers that only Karen can handle Clair's abrupt manner. "She did say she was going to visit you…"

"At any rate," Clair interrupts her cousin, "he hasn't shown up yet. Maybe he got lost on the Ice Path."

"You sound worried," Lance comments in an offhand manner.

"I'm _not _worried!"

Lance sits up straight in his chair when he hears the familiar crack of the voice. "Your voice just cracked."

Clair hesitates for a fraction of a second too long. "No I didn't," she denies lamely.

Lance feels the corners of his mouth curl up with sadistic delight in his cousin's apparent breach in confidence. "It did! You're actually worried about this challenger!"

"I am not," Clair says loudly.

"Clair, there is no use lying to me. You are worried about Gold beating you. Admit it."

"You-" Clair sputters angrily, but Lance merely hums to himself, feeling delighted at having caught his cousin off her confident guard. "You-!"

She hangs up on him with what appears to be a slam of the phone, and Lance lets out a satisfied chuckle. "She's got reason to be worried," he says to his Dragonair as it floats by lazily uncoiling its long body. "Gold's good. I haven't seen anyone like him in forever."

_It would be such a shame if he loses to Clair_, Lance thinks wistfully.

...

And loses he does.

Clair calls back gleefully, pride in her voice. "He just left."

"You beat him?" Lance asks incredulously.

"What do you think, cousin dear? I told you that the rest of the Leaders haven't been training."

Pryce makes a sound that sounds something like a huff and a snort; Morty simply leans back as he shuffles his Uno deck, amused by Clair's accusation. Lance rolls his eyes at them. "Sorry," he says, covering the mouthpiece. "You know how Clair gets after a victory."

Morty waves off the apology and Pryce just pokes the Ecruteak Gym Leader in the foot. "Get on with it, I haven't played Uno in forever," he says grumpily.

"Who are you talking to?" Clair wants to know.

"No one. Congratulations, Clair." Lance pauses. "But you do know that he can come back and challenge you _again_. Right?" he asks slowly.

Clair gives a derisive snort. "Course he can. I'll just defeat him again. His Pokemon were just so easy to dispose of."

"She's lying," Morty says without looking up from the cards he is dealing to Pryce.

Lance raises an eyebrow. "How many Pokemon did he have left?" he asks his cousin.

"One, and it was a Typhlosion."

"Wrong," Morty says, "it was an Ampharos, and my Ghosts tell me that it was a hard battler. Clair went down to her last Dragonair before she won."

"Are you sure it wasn't an Ampharos?" Lance asks.

Clair hesitates. "Okay. Maybe it _was _an Ampharos."

"It was," Morty says from his position. "My Ghosts don't lie."

"They're _ghosts_," Lance points out, covering the mouthpiece. "By default they _are _liars."

"Not mine." Morty serenely keeps on dealing cards.

Clair keeps on talking. "It's a good thing I had some Full Restore on hand, or else-" She stops short, and Lance raises his eyebrow. "Or else _what_?" he asks.

"Nothing."

"You used Full Restore?" Lance's interest is piqued, and he is the sort of person who won't let go of something until he has discovered everything there is to know about it. "So if you hadn't used it, Gold would have won?"

"A win is a win," Clair retorts defensively.

"Oh, I'm sure it is," Lance says sweetly.

"Don't use that tone on me," Clair snaps. "I won. Fair and square."

"Uh huh." Lance smirks.

"I hate you," Clair growls into the phone before slamming the phone down again.

"You enjoy winding Clair up too much," Morty comments as Lance returns to the game.

"Somebody has to." Lance picks up his hand. "Okay. Do I go first?"


	4. Chapter 4

Clair calls the next morning, telling Lance that Gold has shown up at her Gym- _again_- and has lost for the second consecutive time. "I don't know why you guys had such a tough time with him," she says derisively.

"_You _guys?" Lance repeats.

"Fine. All the other Gym Leaders."

Lance sighs and rubs his face. "Clair. You said it yourself; you train more than anyone else than I know, even me. I keep telling you, give your Pokemon a break. The last time I visited, your Dratini looked like it was about to curl up in a corner and sleep for the rest of eternity."

"Yeah, well, that Dratini is now an extremely powerful Dragonair, so I don't see why you're complaining."

"Clair," Lance says gently, "strength isn't everything. I'm surprised Karen hasn't told you that yet."

"Look, strength is important. Speed is important. And I _do _give my Pokemon breaks!"

"Dear Clair, telling your Pokemon to do a hundred and fifty laps instead of a hundred and sixty is hardly a break."

"Don't tell me how to train my Pokemon," Clair snaps hotly. "Last time I checked, I almost beat your entire Elite Four."

"Except me. And Karen. And Koga. And Bruno. The only reason why you beat Will was because he was new at the job."

"Oh, _shut-_" A gong echoes on the other side of the phone line, and Clair stops in the middle of her sentence. "We'll continue this later," she growls into the receiver. "_After _I beat Gold."

...

Except that she doesn't win, because Gold comes back with an even stronger team and wipes the floor with Clair's dragons. Clair calls Lance up, fuming as she recounts how he silently stood there and let his Pokemon do all the work for him. "He didn't even _say _anything!" Clair cries into the phone. "Honestly! What kind of trainer _is _that?"

"A trainer who is in tune with his entire team," Lance replies drily. "He beat you. Good. Somebody had to."

He can almost envision Clair's death glare. "He didn't get the badge, though," she says a little grumpily.

Lance sits up straight. "What do you _mean_, he didn't get the badge? He beat you, didn't he? Was there a technicality?"

"I'm supposed to give challengers the final badge when I think they're ready for the League," Clair says with a haughty edge to her voice that Lance isn't sure he likes very much. "He's not ready."

"He _beat you, _Clair. I think that means he _is _ready." Lance grimly taps his fingers against his desk, annoyance rising in his chest. "Honestly, even though he's beaten you, you just can't accept the fact that he's good enough, can you?"

"He's _not_," Clair snaps.

"Why are you being so worked up over this?" Lance demands. "He's a _challenger_, just like every other one we've faced before this. Why are you picking on him in particular?"

"Because he's just _not _good enough, like me!" Clair shouts, and then there is silence.

There it is, Lance realizes. There's what was hiding beneath all of Clair's confidence and pride and intense training. Clair, he remembers a little belatedly, has always been the self-conscious one, and for good reasons, too. When the two had tried out for the Elite Four, it was Lance who had won, because Clair's training wasn't good enough to beat her cousin in the final battle. Lance had always been the talented one in their dragon clan, always the one people thought of when they spoke of the 'famous dragon user'. And that was why Clair threw herself into training, into pushing herself and her Pokemon to every possible limit she could find- and then breaking that limit and setting a new one. It wasn't hard for someone like Clair to believe after a while that they were practically invincible.

To have someone as talented as Gold come along and shatter all those expectations… Lance understands now why Clair is so frustrated. "Clair…" he says as softly and gently as possible into the phone. "Oh, Clair..."

"It's just not fair," Clair says into the phone, her voice speaking of tears threatening to break the dam holding every ounce of misery back. "It's just not fair. I've been training my entire life… my entire career as a Gym Leader. And this kid comes along and beats me at my own game….and he's what, thirteen?"

"Talent has no age," Lance reminds her gently. "Someone has to beat you in order to show you where your limits are."

"Not a kid."

"Then who?"

Clair hangs up, and Lance is left listening to the dial tone. He sighs and leans back in his chair, rubbing his eyes as exhaustion settles itself like a cloak over his body. "Some days," he says aloud to the Dragonair coiled up in the corner of the room, "I wish I wasn't the Champion."

...

Clair does not call back that night, or the next night, or the rest of the nights for an entire week. It is Karen who has to tiptoe into the office and tell Lance that Gold has won his final badge and will be coming to challenge the Elite Four soon. When Lance testily asks Karen, "And _why _couldn't she tell me this herself?", Karen can only shrug, because Clair has told her nothing- said nothing- done nothing since her loss.

Lance tries calling his cousin, but the lines are always tied up, and he suspects that she's deliberately taken her phone off the hook.

He wishes that he could go and visit, but since he knows that Gold will be here any day now, he is forced to stay in the League and train his Dragons for the impending battle. He tries asking Will if there's _any _possibility that the Psychic user can lend him an Abra for a day, but Will just looks at him with a look that's either reprimanding or apologetic. Lance can never tell, because of that blasted mask covering his face.

It is Pryce who tackles the issue when he comes to train with Lance at the Champion's request. "You're distracted," he comments bluntly.

Dragonite attacks with a Hyper Beam, but Pryce's Piloswine looks hardly affected. "I'm not," Lance says through gritted teeth. "Dragonite, Bite!"

"Barrier," Pryce counters, and Piloswine throws up an ice barrier that Dragonite crashes into. "That's the fifth time you've tried that move, and you're zero for five in the winning category."

"Pryce, quit talking and start fighting," Lance snaps.

But the old man returns Piloswine to its Pokeball and folds his arms. "You're not going to win against Gold with _that _attitude."

"What attitude?"

Pryce unfolds his arms and reaches for his walking stick. "Oh, don't act stupid with me, Lancelot. You're snappier than usual, and you aren't giving good instructions. What happened to the Champion I used to know?"

Lance scowls at the older man and sits himself down heavily into a chair nearby. "It's Clair," he says grumpily.

"What did she do now?"

Lance throws up his arms. "She's taking the loss to Gold _way _too seriously. She almost denied him the Rising Badge, for Mew's sake!"

"But that's not what's bothering you," Pryce prods gently.

Lance sighs loudly. "No. What's bothering me is that I can't get in touch with her. None of us can. I'm worried that she may be sent into a tailspin after this loss- it is a devastating loss for her, after all."

"So you're just worried that you can't reach her, and frustrated because you have no avenue to do so?" Pryce taps his walking stick on the cave floor.

"I suppose so, yes." Lance cannot understand how the issue suddenly seems so simple to understand.

The old man shrugs. "I'll go see her for you. I've been meaning to visit Blackthorn for a while, anyway, since the Mart there apparently has a better quality Potion than what is sold in Mahogany."

"You'd do that?" Lance asks to some degree of surprise, since Pryce has never really enjoyed being around Clair- actually, Lance adds in his head, _nobody _really enjoys being around Clair.

Pryce nods. "Yes. I'll take Morty with me- he's been cooped up for four days straight with those Ghosts and he needs some fresh air." He points at Lance with his stick with his right hand, and releases Piloswine with his left. "Now get to work, Lancelot. You have much training to do."

...

It is a balmy Monday morning when Gold finally shows up at the League doors. The Elite Four gather in Lance's office, watching the security cameras as the capped boy limps through the doors. "Wow, Victory Road sure did a number on him," Will comments.

"Hardly blame him for that. Victory Road is full of wild Pokemon." Karen watches the screen as Gold produces six Pokemon for the resident Nurse Joy to heal. "At least he's in better shape than some of the trainers we've seen."

Bruno folds his arms at the back. "Who's first?" he rumbles.

"I am. I drew short straw." Will glares at Koga. "Although I'm pretty sure that was rigged."

"You're a psychic, you're supposed to know these things," Koga drawls.

Lance folds his fingers together, watching as Gold approaches the Mart. "He'll probably be there in five minutes or so. You'd best head down, Will."

"Aye aye!" Will salutes and heads down the stairs. "Wish me luck!"

"Luck," everyone says tonelessly as the door closes behind the exuberant trainer.

...

Will battles hard, but he is no match for the strong Gold. Lance watches with some degree of amazement as Gold takes out Will's Xatu with nothing but an Eevee; Will takes the Eevee out with a Lovely Kiss from Jynx, but then is completely demolished by Gold's Umbreon. "This is talent," he says to no one in particular.

"Or luck." Koga stands up, flexing his muscles. "My turn."

...

Koga does a little bit better, removing Gold's Hitmonchan from the equation. For a while Lance is fairly sure that this might be the end of Gold's challenge, but Gold comes raring back with his next pick- his Golem that took out Jasmine's Steel-type Pokemon. But the battle is long, hard, and ferocious- and all the trainers in the room watch, mesmerized as Golem inflicts severe damage on first Crobat, then Ariados, then Venomoth.

"I keep telling him to get stronger Pokemon," Bruno grumbles as Golem is forced to Selfdestruct in order to defeat the tenacious Muk. "But he never listens, does he?"

...

Bruno's one to talk, because his battle is the shortest out of them all. Gold utilizes his Water type Gyarados to its full extent and pounds away at Bruno's Pokemon's lack of speed and agility. Onix is particularly quick to go down to Gyarados's Ice Beam, and the rest of Bruno's Pokemon do not fare any better.

"Karen, you're up," Will says cheerfully.

The Dark-type user looks up from painting her nails. "Oh bother," she mutters. "I was just getting this shade right."

...

Lance watches Gold approach Karen with what feels like a million butterflies exploding in his stomach. "What do you think?" he asks Will and Koga, who have drawn up chairs to watch the battle on the screen. "Does Karen have a chance?"

"Oh, she has _a _chance," Will points out. "Whether Gold is going to give her that chance is quite another matter altogether."

"Three Pokemon down," Koga muses. "Karen has beaten trainers with more Pokemon than that."

"But he's not normal," Lance reminds them all.

"Oh, shh, shh! They're beginning!" Will shushes them all as Karen releases her favorite starter, Umbreon. "Lance, do you have popcorn?"

Lance is saved from answering that ridiculous question by Koga throwing a pen at the unsuspecting Will's head.

...

Karen does the best out of all Elite Four, taking down Typhlosion and almost Gyarados until Gold throws out a Hyper Potion to his Water Type Pokemon. The battle stretches well over an hour, with the tide of battle swinging back and forth like a pendulum. In the end, it is Karen's Umbreon that survives the longest, darting between Gyarados's Ice Beams and Hyper Beams, but then Gyarados sweeps the Dark Pokemon off its feet with a well-timed Hydro Pump.

When the dust clears, it is Gold's Gyarados that still stands in the battlefield.

"Ah," Lance says to no one in particular as he rises to his feet. "And so it goes."

"Good luck, boss," Will says brightly.

"Like he's going to need it," Koga snorts as Lance closes the door behind him.


	5. Chapter 5

Lance isn't really sure how long he waits before the double doors leading to his chambers open- he supposes Karen has been delivering her long-winded speech again. _I hardly blame her_, he thinks with a touch of a smile on his face, _after all she hasn't really had the chance to talk at someone lately other than Will._

His fingers curl around the Pokeball on his belt, where he feels Gyarados sliding around. He can sense Gyarados's impatience to get onto the battlefield and prove its worth. "Hush," he says, and Gyarados settles into a tense silence, the calm before the storm.

The doors close behind the small figure of Gold, and Lance crosses his arms as the boy makes his long trek down the road. Gold's lean figure grows larger and larger, legs easily loping past the tall imposing statues that line the road to the final battle of the Champion. Lance grins when he recognizes the familiar cap and the shock of black hair that falls across Gold's eyes. Gold stops at the bottom of the stairs, hesitant of whether to ascend or stay where he is; Lance beckons to him to come forward. "I've been waiting for you," he says, his voice carrying through the silent room.

Gold nods, and Lance notices the dark rings under his eyes. _He's tired_.

"Gold! I knew that you, with your skills, would eventually reach me here." Lance rolled up his sleeves, and saw Gold begin to reach for his Pokemon, an unspoken challenge that hangs in the air like a Rhydon in the room. "There's no need for words now," Lance announces, his fingers tightening around Gyarados's Pokeball. "We will battle to determine who is the stronger of the two of us. As the most powerful Trainer and as the Pokémon League Champion… I, Lance the dragon master, accept your challenge!"

_And so it begins_.

...

Gold is down to two Pokemon, Lance notices right off the bat. It is obvious, because Gold has a habit of silently instructing his Ampharos to duck and dodge all of Gyarados's assaults. _He has no Pokemon to spare. He is riding on two Pokemon. _

Lance's Gyarados is the first one to fall, taken down by an inopportune Thunder Wave by Ampharos and then a sharp Thunderbolt. Lance isn't fazed, though, because he sees the slight wobble in the knees of Gold's Pokemon. Ampharos is tired, weakened by the Hyper Beam it survived.

So Lance releases Dragonite, and the beast goes to work with Slash. Ampharos is out by the time Dragonite raises its claws for the third time, and Lance can see the worry on Gold's face as he recalls his fallen Electric Pokemon.

Gyarados is out next, and Lance appreciates the way Gold's Gyarados rises up in defiance, roaring loudly before unleashing Dragon Rage on Dragonite.

He's not surprised when Dragonite takes the hit and is knocked out, or even when Gyarados summons Hydro Pump to knock Charizard out, but he _is _surprised when his second and Aerodactyl are all knocked out by a single Ice Beam. _I thought Pryce prepared me for that. _

"Dragonite! It's all up to you!" He tosses the ball in the air, and Dragonite explodes out of its ball, screeching as it descends upon the scaly water dragon.

"Slash!" Lance orders, and Dragonite swipes at the already struggling Gyarados.

Gold's eyes flare with what seem like indignance, and then Gyarados is clawing and biting and freeing itself from the barrage of swipes descending upon its long blue body. Lance sees the Gyarados move too late, and shouts desperately, "Move, Dragonite! Wing Attack!"

But he is a fraction of a second too late. Gyarados flails upwards, and Dragonite is smacked to the side like it weighs nothing. The water dragon rears, screeching a horrible victorious roar, and then unleashes Dragon Rage on Dragonite.

_And so it ends. _Lance can't help but grin widely from ear to ear as the dust begins to clear. "It's over," he yells.

From behind the dust, Gold steps forward, face coated in a thin film of dust and dirt. Lance notices that there looks to be two streams of tears trickling down Gold's face as the boy takes in the enormity of the feat he has just accomplished. Then Gold registers who he is talking to, and he steps backwards, a sheepish expression writing itself all over his face, and Lance realizes that Gold feels somewhat embarrassed to have defeated the Champion.

So he hurries to reassure the young trainer. "It's an odd feeling. I'm not angry that I lost. In fact, I feel happy. Happy that I witnessed the rise of a great new Champion!" And then he takes Gold's hand and shakes it. Hard. "Good on you, kid," he whispers proudly, as though he has known Gold his entire life.

...

Lance drags a dazed Gold into the Hall of Fame later when Mary begins pestering the kid for an interview. He steers Gold towards the large machine whirring softly at the back of the room and positions Gold right in front of the camera. "It's been a long time since I last came here," he says wistfully. He gestures to the large hulking machine. "This is where we honor the League Champions for all eternity. Their courageous Pokemon are also inducted."

He glances behind just in time to see Will's Abra teleport the entire Elite Four down into the room, where they are all grinning from ear to ear. Lance grins back, knowing that despite everything they tried intimidating him with, the Elite Four are proud of this kid- proud that a new Champion has joined their ranks. "Here today," he announces, turning back to Gold, "we witnessed the rise of a new League Champion- a trainer who feels compassion for, and trust in, his Pokemon. A trainer who succeeded through perseverance and determination. The new League Champion who has all the makings of greatness!" He claps Gold on the shoulder. "Gold, allow me to register you and your partners as Champions!"

As Gold tentatively steps up to the machine, Lance feels a hand on his shoulder. "Good job, boss," Karen says quietly, and he sees Will come up beside him on the other side. "You did well."

Lance smiles. "I did my best. I'm proud of this kid."

"We are too." Will thinks for a moment. "Do you think he'll take kindly to a spare Abra as a gift? They've been breeding so much lately."

"Ugh," Karen groans as Koga and Bruno come to stand next to the entire team. "Too much information, Will."

Lance sighs and shakes his head as both of them begin squabbling again. _Some things just never change._

_...  
><em>

All the Gym leaders come by that afternoon to congratulate Gold. Most of them bear gifts; Lance notices with some degree of amusement that it's the men who awkwardly offer some sort of TM or HM or present to Gold, whereas the women are more focused on engulfing the clearly uncomfortable boy with a squeal and a hug. Lance smirks. He remembers this treatment.

"You brought out the carrot cakes!" Bugsy drops by with a plate filled with carrot cakes. "These are wonderful. Where'd you get them?"

Lance shrugs. "Koga got them."

"Might want to check your food," Morty whispers wickedly as he passes by the Bug-type Gym Leader. Bugsy simply looks at his plate, dismayed, while Falkner and Morty look on, trying not to laugh.

Lance shakes his head at them as he passes, but he makes sure to clap Morty on the back as he passes. "Looking pretty as always, Jasmine," he compliments the Olivine City Gym Leader as she tucks her feet underneath her long skirt. She blushes and stammers something incomprehensible, and Lance merely smiles and nods as he sweeps by.

"Always the charmer, aren't you?" Clair falls into step beside him, and Lance raises an eyebrow at her. "You're one to talk," he teases.

"Too much training, not enough charm," Clair murmurs with a touch of regret. "Did you know that Mother asked if I had a fiancée yet?"

Lance looks at her sideways out of the corner of his eye as they turn into the hallways leading to his office. "_Do _you?"

"Only if we're allowed to marry Pokemon, in which case I'm married to the entire Dragon Den," Clair remarks with her former touch of sarcasm.

Lance chuckles as they near his door. "When did you visit Mother?"

"Last week, after I… lost." Clair pulls on her ear. "I thought having some time off would be a good idea."

Lance opens his office door and gestures for Clair to come in. "Was it?"

"Yeah." Clair goes in and reaches automatically for the satin cushion on the chair by Lance's desk. "You know what, it really was."

"I'm glad to hear that." Lance sits down behind the desk and faces his cousin, who is looking down at her lap and tugging on her ear. "Have you congratulated Gold yet?" he asks gently.

"Yeah… I did." Clair lets out a puff of breath that might be construed as a sigh. "I also told him he could come back and challenge me anytime. The training might be good."

"Oh, it will be," Lance says affably, leaning back in his chair and putting his hands behind his head. "Between you and me, I'm glad that he's the new Champion. It's quite boring, being the Champion with _no one _to challenge me for the title." He drums his fingers behind his head. "Maybe I'll go find Red," he says thoughtfully.

Another idea strikes him, and he gets a thoughtful look in his eyes. "Hmm."

"Hmm?" Clair is quick to pick up on her cousin's pensive mood. "You're thinking about something. What is it?"

"I wasn't even the real Champion," Lance says absently.

"What? Of course you were. Red gave you the position."

"Yes. He _gave _me the position, but I am- _was_- Champion in name only. One greater than me relinquished his position- it is hardly something that I am proud of." Lance leans forward, splaying his fingers on his desk. "Gold is clearly greater than I am. That much I think we can all admit."

"Most of us," Clair mutters a little resentfully.

"Most of us," Lance amends. "There is one more challenge awaiting Gold."

"Several more challenges," Clair corrects.

"Several more challenges," Lance agrees. "The Kanto Gym Leaders- and Red."

"But do you think he'll take the challenge?" Clair wonders. "After all, he just defeated the elite trainers in Johto. He's going to be comfortable _here_."

Lance remembers the glint in Gold's eyes whenever a battle challenge is issued. "Oh, he'll take the challenge," he says confidently. "And if I know that kid, he's going to win those battles."


	6. Chapter 6

So a legend is born in Johto, a legend that travels across regions and wastes no time in beating Lieutenant Surge for the Thunderbadge. Lance grins contentedly when an annoyed Janine calls the League about three weeks later, demanding to speak to her father to understand why her poison tactics didn't work against Gold.

His grin grows even wider when he hears Koga mutter into the phone, "I don't know, Janine. He beat me, too- no, I am _not _losing my touch- might I remind you that you lost to him as well?"

It takes Gold two months, but finally he finishes off Blue's Pokemon- a battle Lance wishes he could have watched since Blue is by far one of the toughest trainers he has ever had the privilege of knowing. Professor Oak calls with the results, exuberantly bubbling over with the fact that he has sent Gold to find Red on Mt. Silver. "It's a new era, a new journey!" he says excitedly. "Dear me, maybe he can actually find Red and that boy can come down from the mountain!"

"He has been gone for far too long," Lance agrees thoughtfully. "Perhaps he may come down in time for the Gym Leader challenge at the end of this month. I believe Pryce mentioned something about taking a vacation for several weeks... someone will need to upkeep his Gym."

But a month comes and goes, and still no sign of Red _or _Gold. Lance wins the challenge handily and for the time being occupies top spot in the League; nothing really changes except for the surprise defeat of Morty by Falkner's more experienced Flying Pokemon. Yet everyone holds their positions; nobody beats the Elite Four until the semis, where Will loses to Karen and Bruno loses to Koga. Karen, the winner against Koga, promptly falls to Lance's faster Pokemon- _as it should be_, she says rather regretfully later.

One day, Lance looks up to the sound of his door opening, and Karen and Will walk in, Gold sandwiched between both of them. At first glance, Lance observes that Gold has grown taller, his face more mature. But upon closer inspection he notices cuts and bruises and scrapes, probably from scaling Mt Silver, Lance thinks to himself. "Are you okay?" he asks first.

Gold slowly nods his head.

Lance frowns. "Did you beat Red?"

The young boy shakes his head.

"He couldn't find him the second time," Will offers when the silence grows too thick. He winces when Karen pokes him in the arm. "Don't hate just because _you _don't have psychic powers!"

"But you found Red the first time," Lance clarifies, just to be sure.

Gold nods.

_So Red is still alive… and missing. _Lance sighs and beckons for a chair for Gold. "Well, you tried. Have a rest. Tomorrow I'll move out and you can have this room for yourself."

Gold catches Lance's arm as the man is about to leave, shaking his head wildly.

Lance raises his eyebrow and turns to Will, who steps forward, clearly happy to be able to help. "I think he's saying he doesn't want to stay here."

"Why not?" Lance asks in surprise. "It's got everything he needs. Facilities. Training-"

Gold stares long and hard at Lance, and the Dragon user comes to a realization. "Oh. But you don't need any of those things."

"He wants to beat Red," Karen says quietly. "Even I don't have to be a mind reader to know that."

The golden-eyed boy nods.

"But you're the Champion," Lance says.

"Not till he beats Red," Will points out. "He's here because he needs training."

"Practice battles."

Gold bobs his head.

Lance glances around at his office. "Well," he sighs, "I _suppose _I could stay here and hold down the fort."

"Um, Lance?"

The former Champion looks at Will, who shrugs sheepishly. "I think Gold is saying that he doesn't _want _to stay here."

"As in…"

"As in, he doesn't want to be cooped up in a tiny room," Karen says flatly. "It's fine for you, Lance, but this boy is a nomad. He needs to get out and travel the region, capture Pokemon. In fact, I bet Professor Oak gave you a Pokedex, didn't he?"

Gold produces a red machine, and Karen throws up her hands. "That man gives _every _young trainer one of those."

"What Karen is very undiplomatically saying is, Gold has other duties other than Champion duties to perform," Will cuts in. "Duties such as finding Red and defeating him, duties such as completing the Pokedex, and duties such as mapping out the region for future trainers."

Karen glances at Will when he makes that last part of the statement, and Will shrugs. "He showed me his Pokegear."

Lance looks at Gold. "Are they right?" He ignores Will's muttered, "Of course I'm right, I'm a _psychic_".

The Champion nods again, and Lance sighs. "Okay. I'll call you if there is a trainer who bypasses Pryce and Clair. Then you'll come right back. Right?"

Gold grins from ear to ear, and Lance is stricken by how similar he and Red are.

...

"So you're going to be at the League as usual, then?"

Lance nods before he realizes that Clair can't see him nodding. He mentally curses Gold for nodding too much, but bites his tongue before replying. "Yes, I suppose so. Someone needs to keep Koga in his place."

"Pity," Clair says wistfully. "I was hoping that you could come visit sometime."

"I still can," Lance points out. "Now that I no longer have to stay at the League in case a trainer comes along, I'm free to go visit trainers and Gyms. When are you free?'

Clair snorts. "I'm a Gym Leader. I'm free any day."

"What about training?" Lance teases.

"Training can wait. Seeing my favorite cousin is more important."

"Oh, so it's 'my favorite cousin' now, is it?"

There is a pause, then Clair mutters, "Fine… so a battle would be good training."

"I thought so," Lance grins.

...

Gold drops by often, awkwardly waving hello as he battles for sport against the Elite Four. Lance is amazed at how quickly Gold grows along with his Pokemon, old and new alike as he brings in his former team and new Pokemon to train for a battle he still has not yet won. The Elite Four offer their help when they can; Will offers Gold tips on speed attacks, Koga offers tips on disguising true intentions, Bruno trains Gold's team in endurance, Karen teaches strategy and Lance teaches power. Gold is a fast learner, and after a year, Will comes in to tell Lance that he feels like Gold is the teacher and no longer the student.

The Gym Leaders join in the fun, too, constantly training against Gold when he drops by their towns. Lance is pleased with the improvements in their battling skills- by the time the next Gym Leader challenge rolls around, the battles are incredibly fast and powerful and everything a Champion might expect from elite trainers.

So a year after Gold has made his incredible journey to the Indigo Plateau, Lance sits in his chair and thoughtfully reflects the events of past years. "It's been interesting, huh?" he says to Pryce, who is deliberating his next move.

"Not so interesting that I still can't win," Pryce says grumpily.

"Not chess. This last year."

"Oh, Pokemon. Why didn't you say so?" Pryce taps his walking stick on the floor. "Gold is a good change for all of us. We were getting… _laconic_."

"He defeated us and Team Rocket in the same year. Other trainers might take _years _to do that."

"He still hasn't beaten Red," Pryce notes.

"No… but then again, Red is in a league of his own." Lance taps his fingers thoughtfully. "Maybe some day Gold will be in that league."

"Makes you wonder- are there going to be more trainers like these?" Pryce takes out one of Lance's pawns. "Or are these simply child prodigies?"

"Who knows," Lance says absently. "Who knows, maybe there are more trainers like these in other regions."

"Maybe," Pryce agrees. "But in the meantime, checkmate."

"Pryce, you cheated," Lance says flatly.

"No I didn't!"

"Yes you did," Morty says from where he is napping on the couch.

Lance grins as he leans back in his chair. At least this year I won't be bored, he thinks to himself. At least for now.

_At least for now. _


End file.
